by Bridie Blake
“So who is next in line?”
“Kalaowin law dictates that with no daughter to succeed her, a vote is made by the elders to instate a new Shiasa. Your grandmother’s line ends with her so a new family will be voted in.”
“I have to get voted in. If I am Shiasa, I can unite this kingdom,” she said and grabbed Darby’s hands. “Any idea how to do that?”
“You have to belong to a tribe first,” Zadi spoke as she joined them. “If you were a man, you would be able to marry into one.”
“Well, clearly I’m not a man. Anything else?”
“There is one way. Come on.” She rushed off, yelling at them to follow.
Tempani smiled. It seemed Zadi had come alive now that she was back among her people.
They all stood in Tempani’s tent and stared as Zadi explained her plan. Tempani frowned, watching Chae as the news sunk in.
“So the only way she can join a tribe is if I marry into one?” Chae shook his head, his eyes meeting Dahlia’s. “Surely there’s another way.”
Zadi shrugged. “There’s not.”
Tempani bristled. She did not like the way Zadi was treating the matter. Like it wasn’t an issue that Chae had to marry against his desire.
“We’ll find another way,” Tempani assured him. “There must be a sacrifice I can make. A ritual I could go through.”
“Can she marry me?” Madoc asked. “Don’t I belong to a tribe?”
“Only a male can marry into a tribe,” she said. “Besides your mother never rightfully claimed you as her own. You are not of our people.”
Madoc turned on Zadi, his tall frame looming over her. Tempani gave the girl credit. She didn’t cower when most others would. “Don’t tell me I’m not Kalaowin,” he hissed. “It’s that thinking that helped divide this kingdom. You lot are as bad as the Kamaris.”
Madoc yelped as a bright spark flew through the air and landed at his feet.
The Shiasa stood in the entrance, her face clouded with fury. She cursed at him and sent another spark his way.
Tempani spun around and aimed a ball of fire at the ground before the old lady. “Don’t attack my friends,” she snapped at her grandmother. “He has a point.”
Her grandmother spat on the ground and hurled an insult at her.
“If you keep spitting old lady, you’ll soon run out of saliva and shrivel up before they’ve found a new Shiasa.”
“It won’t be you,” she hissed. “Your mother didn’t have the heart and neither do you.”
Tempani growled at her. “Do. Not. Speak. Of. My. Mother,” she said through clenched teeth. The anger coursed through her veins, and she wanted to unleash it on this woman standing before her.
And then she saw the small smile of satisfaction on her grandmother’s face, and Tempani knew she was being tested. And failing. She closed her eyes and tried to calm her breathing. She would not let her niska defeat her.
When her anger had faded she opened her eyes and stared back into the cold, black ones. A triumphant smile on her face. Tempani had won this challenge. She just wondered how many more there would be.
—
Dahlia yawned. Her eyes heavy from not sleeping and raw from crying. She had been so stupid. Had allowed herself to get swept up in the love she felt for Chae, and now it was being ripped from her. Against her will. Against his.
And she was angry about it. Why did she have to give up the person she loved for this cause? It wasn’t fair. She swallowed and scolded herself for being selfish. It was all for the greater good, was it not? Tempani had been able to give up Nic. Why was she not strong enough to part from Chae?
But the thought of not being with him ever again left her feeling such a sense of loss that she saw nothing beyond that. She knew she could not continue on without him. Without his smiles that he kept solely for her. His short laugh that sounded like a bark. His sharp mind that entertained her for hours with stories. His lips that always knew how to extract even the slightest ounce of pleasure from her.
But Tempani was her friend. She would be her savior. And here she was, standing in her way. Dahlia would be the reason this all fell apart.
She rolled over when she heard him enter. She didn’t want him to see her tear stained face. See that she wasn’t as strong as he was.
He sat beside her and tried to take her hand, but she pulled it from his reach. “Dahlia,” he breathed. “Please.”
“I don’t want to hear it,” she whimpered. “I can’t hear you say you’re marrying someone else.”
He sighed. “And I can’t bear to say those words.”
She stifled a sob. “Have they chosen someone?”
“It doesn’t matter. I won’t do it.”
She shook her head and rolled over to face him. “We have no choice,” she sobbed. “We can’t stand in Tempani’s path. We all need this too much.”
He scooped up her hand and held it against his cheek. “I need you too much. I know it’s selfish, but I won’t give you up. Ever.”
“But what about…” she gasped as he cut her off and covered her lips with his.
“She has promised me she will find another way,” he murmured. He kicked off his boots and lay down beside Dahlia. He lifted her up and rested her against him. She nestled under his chin and relaxed into his arms.
“I won’t give you up either,” she whispered before her heavy lids finally closed.
Chae frowned as he stroked her hair. Please find another way, he prayed to whichever God or Goddess was listening. He wasn’t even sure which one he believed in anymore.
—
Nic rubbed his pounding temples as he stared down at the pile of reports that lay on his desk. They all said the same thing. The kingdom was in trouble. From the drought in the north to the pirate raids on their west coast to the tensions in the city. He didn’t know which problem to face first.
And to top it all off there were the growing problems with Galiena. Upon his father’s death, Nic made the decision to not ask for Princess Naleeni’s hand in marriage. He needed to focus on his kingdom. And it needed to be done without Galiena’s influence.
Emperor Elin had not taken the news well. He had seen the refusal as a slight against his daughter. Nic knew it wouldn’t be long before he started demanding land again.
How did his father do it? Nic barely had a moment to himself. He was sitting in Parliament or listening to the complaints and advice from the realms’ most powerful nobles or sending troops out to restore order. Sleep seemed to be a luxury of the past.
He frowned as he read the next report. Hallam had sent out some of his own men to get an idea of Tempani’s whereabouts. So far they’d had no luck in finding her. They knew she had been at the convent but had disappeared from there two weeks ago.
Nic breathed a sigh of relief. Teddy had gotten to her in time. She was safe. For now. There was only so much he could do at the moment to keep people from hunting her down and extracting their own revenge.
The bell chimed to signal dinner. Nic groaned and pulled himself to his feet. Now he had to sit through course after course while listening to the nobles tell him they were right about Tempani all along. He wanted nothing more than to avoid the court, but he knew he needed to put on a good front for the kingdom in wake of the murder.
And if anyone made a snide comment about his beloved he would disappear into himself and pretend he was silencing them once and for all. Perhaps one day he would be able to do it for real.
—
They did their best to ease themselves into tribal life, without forcing their presence on those who clearly didn’t want them there. They continued their training, fighting armed and hand to hand. This would often draw a crowd of curious onlookers. They wanted to see what the girl, who could have been their leader, was capable of.
And she didn’t disappoint. The awe in their eyes was clear as they watched her sword flash in the sunlight, bathing them in diamond sparkles, as she battled Keane. A small laugh was h
eard when she knocked him down, her sword snaking up to his throat.
She raised her eyes, and they fell upon a small woman, a baby sucking from her breast. She had yet to lose the flab from her tummy but underneath that she saw the muscles that once resided there.
She nodded at Tempani and then walked away. Tempani, panting, wiped the sweat from her brow as she watched her leave. Had she just received a small act of acknowledgement from the tribe? She was about to go after her. Ask her if she knew of a way she could join the tribe, but before she could one of the men spat at the feet of Chae. Tempani sighed and walked over to extinguish another argument.
Tempani sat by the fire that night, staring into the flickering flames, so lost in her thoughts that she didn’t notice Zadi sit beside her until she cleared her throat.
“Julo,” Tempani said, a smile on her face as she greeted the girl in Kalaowin. She was trying to speak only in Kalaowin with others who spoke the language and save her Kamari for those who couldn’t.
“Has Chae given any further thought to my idea?”
Tempani frowned. “It isn’t fair on him. I can’t expect him to marry against his will.”
Zadi shook her head, her frustration evident. “You are too soft-hearted with your friends. If you want to be Shiasa, you need to toughen up and stop getting so caught up in their feelings.”
“Chae and my friends are all I have,” she said.
“No, they’re not,” Zadi snapped. “You have a destiny to follow. You have people to lead.” Zadi stood up and wiped the dirt from her breeches. “When you’re ready to be Shiasa, let me know.”
Tempani stared after her. Stung by her words, she felt a sense of betrayal. Weren’t they all in this together? Wasn’t Zadi the one telling the others not to push her too hard? When had that all changed?
She wouldn’t force Chae to marry if he didn’t want to. Every day people were forced to do things against their will, and it wasn’t right nor was it the way she wanted to do things. She wanted to be fair. Just.
“Your girl does not mean to be rude.” The voice was soft and came from behind.
It was the woman from earlier, the baby attached once again to her breast.
“Do you know who I am?”
Tempani shook her head.
The woman inched closer to her, the fire illuminating her face. Her black eyes were piercing and slightly intimidating. She was short in stature and had a nose that was too long for her face. She shouldn’t have been beautiful, but her confidence made it so.
“I am the bodyguard to the Shiasa,” she explained. “My husband, Keer, is standing in for me until she is off the breast.” She gazed lovingly at the baby as it gurgled noisily.
Tempani frowned at the woman. “I don’t care for your husband.”
“He spoke highly of you,” she said. “Said you made it rain. You impressed him.”
Tempani snorted.
She ignored the snort. “Do you know why I am the bodyguard to your grandmother?”
“Because you’re a good fighter?”
“The best fighter,” she corrected. “But that’s not the reason. It was my destiny. I am the eldest daughter of the Shiasa’s brother. When I came of age I returned to my father’s former tribe to take my rightful place as her bodyguard.”
“And it’s always the girls?”
“The first born female relative is always the bodyguard. She will remain in her place until the next one is of age.”
“So we are related?”
The woman nodded. “My successor has now come of age, but she will lose her rightful place now that the line ends with your grandmother.”
“Does that mean that Helio has a daughter? She should have been the bodyguard to my mother?”
“Yes,” she said. “But then Hamalia abandoned us. Chose a Kamari over her people, and in doing so this girl was stripped of her destiny.”
Tempani gritted her teeth. “She didn’t abandon you.”
The woman turned the full force of her gaze on Tempani. “So imagine our surprise when Hamalia’s daughter turns up here with her bodyguard in tow, wanting to reclaim what they believe belongs to them.”
Tempani stared at her, confused.
“It seems your father,” she spoke the words as though they burned her throat, “may have been preparing for this all along. He and Helio must have stayed in contact over these years. Another betrayal to the Shiasa.”
“Zadi?” She muttered. “But she’s a slave. Papa….”
She shook her head. She had thought it weird that her father had a slave in his employ at the manor. He had claimed it was to fit in with Kamari ways, but then they only had one slave. Everyone else on staff was free. Had he really done it because she was her bodyguard and he knew all of this would happen?
Surely not. The king was his closest friend. And he had those maps of Kamara and the Kalaowin region in the old wing. He was working for the king. Or was that just a guise? Had it all been for her?
“Your mother turned her back on us. She did not have the heart of a Shiasa. It is believed her weak heart has been passed to you.”
“So even if I do join a tribe my chances of being voted in are near impossible?”
The woman cocked her head to the side, a glimmer of a smile on her lips. “We are family. The heart you have is the same as mine. I can see that. You must prove you belong here.”
“How?”
“Ask one of the elders to tell you the tale of our First Shiasa. The answer lies there.”
“Thank you.”
“Reeta,” she said.
“Thank you, Reeta.”
Reeta had left her with a lot to think about. But before that she needed to find her cousin. Her bodyguard. She wandered down to the river to find Zadi scrubbing clean one of Tempani’s shirts. Tempani rested a hand on her shoulder.
“You have more important things to do than that,” she said and pulled Zadi to her feet. “If I get struck by an archer right now, it’ll be your fault, cousin.”
Zadi smiled and clasped Tempani’s forearm. “Rando’s,” she corrected. “You need to be Shiasa before you get me as a bodyguard.”
Tempani laughed. “I guess I’ve got some work to do then.”
~9~
THE FIRST SHIASA
Tempani followed the children as they herded the goats up the mountain path to graze on higher ground. She laughed as they chattered away, each one trying to make their voice the loudest so she would listen to them. Despite resistance from her grandmother and most of the adults, the younger ones were starting to warm to the newcomers.
At first they were shy. Hesitant in their approaches to them until one little girl straightened her shoulders and approached Tempani.
“Julo,” she greeted the young girl.
“Julo,” she said back. “Tonight is Elder Night. Ma said to ask for your tale tonight.”
“You’re Reeta’s daughter?”
“Alvara.”
“That’s a pretty name.”
“No, it’s not,” she scowled. “It’s a warrior’s name. I come from strong parents.”
“Of course, you do,” she said.
“Alvara, hurry! The goats are hungry!” One of the boys raced over.
“This is Harri,” she said. “Do you want to come with us?”
Tempani nodded and followed them as they joined the other children. All it had taken was for one of them to approach her and the rest followed. If only it was that easy with adults. With them, she would have to work harder.
She spent the day up the mountain, enjoying the view of the camp below and listening to the stories of the children. They were taught from a young age how to hunt, fight and farm. If it came to it, they could fend for themselves.
They returned to the camp just before the sun set, not allowing Tempani enough time to wash the dirt and goat smell off her body. She shrugged an apology when her friends covered their noses.
“I was fitting in,” she whispered to Dahlia when t
hey sat down to their meal. “The younger ones actually like me.”
“Finally, some progress.”
Tempani grinned. Yes, it was progress. A small step, but a step nonetheless. And tonight she would make an even bigger step. She would find out how to belong.
Her ears pricked as she heard the low, gentle banging of a drum. It grew louder the longer it went. All around them people rose and walked down the path towards the Shiasa’s tent.
Tempani got to her feet. “It’s Elder Night. We need to go.”
“Have we been invited?” Dahlia asked. “I don’t want your grandmother to yell at us in front of everyone.”
“Don’t be silly. Come on.”
The others eyed one another but followed her without a word. She was, after all, their leader. A handful of the children waved to her when they came upon the circle. The adults glared at her.
Her grandmother narrowed her eyes when Tempani moved towards them. She swallowed hard, hoping her voice didn’t betray her and show them how nervous she was.
“We would like to join you this evening.”
“Only Kalaowins may sit,” she hissed.
“Would it make it easier for you, old woman, if I bled before you? Showed you my blood was real?”
“I am Kalaowin,” Zadi spoke up and stepped in front of Tempani. “And as the granddaughter of the Shiasa, I invite these people as my guests.”
Their niski laughed quietly and patted the spot beside him. Zadi sat beside him without another word and beckoned for the others to join her.
The fire crackled as everyone settled around it. Children, desperate to stay awake, snuggled against their parents. Tempani stifled a yawn as she sat in the dirt, her back resting against Dahlia’s legs.
“Elder Night is a tradition rich in history,” the Shiasa spoke. “We invite our children to listen to our stories and take away the wisdom we impart so they may learn from our triumphs and mistakes. Is there a tale anyone would care to hear?”
She ignored Tempani’s raised hand. “With no requests the elders may choose their own tale.”
